Ultimately, curb appeal is an opportunity to add warmth and character to your exterior.
You’ve likely spent months walking your building site, finalizing your floor plan and analyzing window placement to make the most of the views. But have you considered the curb appeal of your new home? The outward appearance of a home is like the cover of a book; it sets the tone for what to expect inside.
There are both expensive and inexpensive ways to create curb appeal, architects and designers of log and timber frame homes say.
- Front Entrance is Vital
It all starts with the front porch and the front door. The goal is to make the home look cozy and inviting. Investing in a covered porch and an elegant front door is a good place to start.
Falling into the more expensive category is to invest in an interesting architectural roofline. Multiple rooflines can make even the most basic of designs visually appealing, even stunning. There are a lot of interesting design opportunities. This can include eyebrow dormers, contemporary cantilevered shed roofs or cascading gables. These features can add depth to the home’s curb appeal.
Designer Molly Cooper of Cooper & CO, a division of Honest Abe Log Homes (Moss, TN), says that opting for a different color for the roofing on the dormers can be a low-cost way to add dramatic curb appeal. “A lot of our clients are opting for standing seam metal roofs and you can choose a different color for dormers that will really make them pop,” Cooper says.
- Mixing Building Materials
Having a blend of different building materials and textures on the outside of the home is another way of increasing curb appeal. This can include brick, rock, and rock veneers on the exposed cement foundation.
Faux rock can be added to the foundation to really add some character It’s inexpensive but this can offer the look of custom masonry without the added costs. A dry stack stone look can be added using faux rock facing, by way of example.
To help counter the horizontal lines of the logs and chinking in Appalachian style log homes, designers will often recommend vertical board and batten siding on gable ends, to add a different texture to the home’s overall appeal.
Care must be taken not to go overboard with it though. One doesn’t want to get too outside the log or timber frame style you are going for, otherwise that can be off putting.
- Incorporate Lots of Lighting
Wiring is inexpensive. So, the time to plan for ample lighting for the exterior is before construction. Designers recommend general lighting for safety and accent lighting for style, to draw attention to timber frame trusses, by way of example. You may elect to light walkways as well, for safety.
- Inexpensive Additions to Add Style
Diana Allen, Architect and design director at Woodhouse: The Timber Frame Company (Mansfield, PA), says timber frame elements can be added to the exterior of the home, which won’t add much to the budget. “Curb appeal from a timber frame home perspective can range from simple to the elaborate by simply changing the accent elements,” Allen says.
“Something as simple as adding some accent timber brackets at a roof overhang can warm up a front elevation and make it more inviting. Including a timber frame element at the front door, like a small covered entry, also adds lots of warmth and offers a hint of what’s waiting inside once they enter,” Allen says.
“A covered entry can be simple, two brackets with a roof, to elaborate, such as a full timber truss and posts set on stone piers, to the most elaborate—a porte-cochere,” Allen says. “But ultimately it is an opportunity to add warmth and character to your exterior.”
“One other simple element I like to add is a small shed roof over the garage doors with timber brackets,” Allen says. “It isn’t expensive and adds just one more little level of detail to the entry element. This is normally found on upper end homes or more expensive homes but is really not a costly element. It can turn the garage door from and eyesore to a desired element very quickly.”
“Timber has an instant calming feeling so adding elements to the entry helps to transition people from the chaotic exterior world to the calm serene world of your home,” Allen says. “There are warm colors and cool colors on the color wheel and timber definitely falls in the warm color earth tones.”